One of the things I enjoyed about book 1 in this series was how there were no easy answers to the questions. Prejudice and hatred was embedded bone-deep in the two factions of the nation, based on allegedly justifable causes - events in history where both maji and non-maji have brutalised each other as each held power in their own way. While the easy, fairy-tale ending would be right there, with the magic back that justice could prevail as clearly the oppressed were peaceful, Adeyemi isn't going to give us the easy, tidy ending. People aren't easy and tidy, and neither are her characters.
Tag: Black literature
BOOK REC: Children of Blood and Bone – Tomi Adeyemi
Author: Tomi Adeyemi (website) UK Publisher: Macmillan Children's Books Genre: Fantasy, YA They killed my mother.They took our magic.They tried to bury us.Now we rise.Zélie remembers when the soil of Orïsha hummed with magic. When different clans ruled – Burners igniting flames, Tiders beckoning waves, and Zélie’s Reaper mother summoning forth souls.But everything changed the … Continue reading BOOK REC: Children of Blood and Bone – Tomi Adeyemi
REVIEW: The Space Between Worlds – Micaiah Johnson
Author: Micaiah Johnson (twitter) UK Publisher: Hodder & Stoughton Genre: Science fiction Reasons Cara has died: - The emperor of the wasteland wanted to make an example of her mother and started with her - One of her mother's boyfriends wanted to cover up what he did to her - She was born addicted and her lungs … Continue reading REVIEW: The Space Between Worlds – Micaiah Johnson
REVIEW: Rosewater (Wormwood Trilogy Book 1) – Tade Thompson
Author: Tade Thompson (twitter) UK Publisher: Orbit Genre: Sci-Fi Rosewater is a town on the edge. A community formed around the edges of a mysterious alien biodome, its residents comprise the hopeful, the hungry and the helpless - people eager for a glimpse inside the dome or a taste of its rumoured healing powers. Kaaro is … Continue reading REVIEW: Rosewater (Wormwood Trilogy Book 1) – Tade Thompson
REVIEW: Queenie – Candice Carty-Williams
Author: Candice Carty-Williams (website / twitter) UK Publisher: Trapeze Genre: Comedy Drama, contemporary fiction Release Date: 11th April 2019 Queenie Jenkins can't cut a break. Well, apart from the one from her long term boyfriend, Tom. That's definitely just a break though. Definitely not a break up. Then there's her boss who doesn't seem to see her … Continue reading REVIEW: Queenie – Candice Carty-Williams
REVIEW: Pride – Ibi Zoboi
Author: Ibi Zoboi (website / twitter) UK Publisher: Harper Collins/Balzer and Bray Genre: Contemporary literature, Classic rewrite Buy Now: ebook | hardcover Zuri Benitez has pride. Brooklyn pride, family pride, and pride in her Afro-Latino roots. But pride might not be enough to save her rapidly gentrifying neighborhood from becoming unrecognizable. When the wealthy Darcy family moves … Continue reading REVIEW: Pride – Ibi Zoboi
REVIEW: Difficult Women – Roxane Gay
Author: Roxane Gay (website / twitter) UK Publisher: Corsair Genre: short stories, literary fiction, magic realism Buy now: ebook | paperback The women in these stories live lives of privilege and of poverty, are in marriages both loving and haunted by past crimes or emotional blackmail. A pair of sisters, grown now, have been inseparable … Continue reading REVIEW: Difficult Women – Roxane Gay
REVIEW: The Belles – Dhonielle Clayton
Author: Dhonielle Clayton (twitter / website) UK Publisher: Gollancz Genre: YA, fantasy Buy Now: ebook | paperback I AM A BELLE. I CONTROL BEAUTY. In the opulent world of Orléans, beauty is power. And only through a Belle's abilities can perfection be achieved . . . though the results always fade. Camellia Beauregard wants to be the … Continue reading REVIEW: The Belles – Dhonielle Clayton
